From the Sector

adidas launches its SS22 Tennis Collection, a high-performance tennis apparel line featuring graphics inspired by Paris’ botanical gardens and green spaces, garments in the collection were made either in part with Parley Ocean Plastic or in part with recycled content.

Launching ahead of the most prominent clay court tournament of the summer, the SS22 Tennis Collection is being premiered on court by adidas next-gen athletes, Elena Rybakina and Felix Auger-Aliassime, alongside Maria Sakkari, Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas who all share a passion for championing sustainability and working together towards a better future for our planet.

From Insight to Action
The SS22 Tennis Collection is another step adidas is taking on its journey to help end plastic waste, and its athletes are sharing this commitment. For adidas athletes, what they wear on the court is not only performance attire but an expression of their personal style and beliefs.

Felix Auger-Aliassime, elite tennis player, commented: "I'm part of a generation of players who care about having an impact on and off the court. When I think about the future, it's not just about my future as a tennis player, but also about the future of the planet. . That's why I wear the new adidas SS22 collection made in part with Parley Ocean Plastic or in part with recycled materials – to send a message that we can all do our part by helping to end plastic waste.“

Fashion-foward Performance
The SS22 Tennis Collection is designed to be bold yet fully functional on court. Each garment features HEAT.RDY technology which is designed to keep players feeling cool, dry and confident as they take on their next challenge.

The Collection features two dresses, tank tops, long sleeve tees and a match skirt for female players. For male players, the collection consists of two tees, a sleeveless tee, a polo tee, a TECHFIT long sleeve top and two different types of shorts.

It is available in a number of different bold graphic prints, all inspired by the Serres d'Auteuil botanical garden. The prominent colors of the collection are black and white.

Balenciaga and adidas Originals confirm the announcement of their partnership. Colliding Balenciaga’s inimitable aesthetic vision with the iconic fervor of the adidas archive, the partnership will see the fashion house subvert and reinterpret the signature DNA of the Three Stripes.

Inspired by the late 90s and early 2000s, the inaugural collection is set to play host to an array of men’s and women’s apparel, accessories and footwear.

The Italian company presented its newest innovations and synergies, among the introduction of SMART O3, a new Ozone Booster improving the bleaching on indigo, and the educational experience Circular Explorations: Recipe for Change, in collaboration with Adriana Galijasevic’s Cocircular Lab at Denim Première Vision.

The Trustainable™ collection FW 23 presents the SMART 03
For Officina39, “Trustainable” is a term that expresses the company’s approach based on honesty, transparency and social responsibility: this attitude once again characterizes the technologies that have given shape to the Trustainable™ collection FW 23.

The latest technological addition to the line is represented by the new Ozone Booster SMART 03,
which assures more final bluish indigo shades, activating the reaction of Ozone on indigo without any strong oxidizing agent. Better results, less aggressive bleaching.

Less water, plus sustainability, empowered result
The new collection also marks the debut of Aqualess Fade, a technology that recreates the bleaching effect of chlorine on fabrics, a waterless special compound for the discoloration of denim on indigo/black garments which reduces resource consumption and environmental impact. This newest innovation completes and integrates Aqualess Mission, a combination of technologies that allows garment laundry processes to reduce 75% of the water use.

Officina39 and Adriana Galijasevic join forces
Circular Explorations: Recipe for Change is the collaborative and educational project developed by Officina39 and Adriana Galijasevic’s Cocircular Lab, showcasing the use of waste as a resource and prolonging the life of the garment through color. Several brands (C.P. Company, Tommy for Life/PVH Corp., Organic Basics, Asics, Lenzing and Camo) donated overstock garments as well as second-grade production or damaged, unsold pieces to be updated with newly developed applications made with Officina39’s Recycrom™, patented dyestuffs range made from textile waste.

The DiloGroup informs at Techtextil in Frankfurt (June 21 – 24, 2022) about new developments aimed at improving production technologies with a focus on needlefelts.

It becomes more evident that the textile industry comes into the focus of regulatory authorities who push respecting sustainability principles and who initiate a new body of laws. Hence all industrial sectors are requested to achieve savings in material and energy. The textile machine building, of course, plays an important role by seizing this initiative and offering solutions for fibre pulp recycling and reduction of energy, water and ancillaries. DiloGroup has made big efforts to meet these challenges together with a circle of partner companies. In this regard focal points of the development work are:

1. Intense Needling
   Needling per se is a mechanical production method with a high energy efficiency. For this reason, the development efforts of DiloGroup aim at producing nonwovens by “intense needling” instead of water entangling, even for light nonwovens made of fine fibres for the medical and hygiene sector with an area weight of 30 – 100 g/m². This would result in a reduction of the environmentally relevant production costs; per annum to about 1/3 to 1/5 of current.
   Despite the prospective advantages of the mechanical intense needling method over the hydrodynamical, water entanglement is at the moment the most important production method for low area weights and highest production capacity and is also offered by the DiloGroup as general contractor in cooperation with partner companies.
2. “Fibre Pulp Recycling”
   Fibrous material in nonwovens and particularly used clothes can be successfully recycled, if staple length can be conserved in the tearing process. In the classical tearing process, staple lengths are dramatically reduced and therefore these fibres can only be used as base material for inferior uses in thermal or acoustic insulation or in protective textiles, transportation or protective covers etc.
   When recycling textile waste in the context of the collection of used clothes, the so called “filament-saving” tearing using special tearing machines and methods must be used to produce fibres with longer staple lengths which can be fed to a nonwoven installation. Hence product characteristics can be better specified and controlled.
3. Additive nonwoven production
   The additive production method of the “3D-Lofter” is especially suited for automotive parts with differently distributed masses; but there may also be potential for increasing uses in the sector of apparel and shoe production.
4. “IsoFeed”-card feeding
   In the field of card feeding, the “IsoFeed” method offers great potential for a more homogeneous card feeding at the same time reducing the variation in cross-machine fibre mass distribution and thus the fibre consumption while conserving the end product quality.

Designed by Creative Director Alessandro Michele, adidas x Gucci merges the emblems of the House with those of the iconic sportswear brand. The collection expands on the sartorial streetwear creations that debuted on the runway with a spectrum of sport-inspired pieces, distinguished by the same kaleidoscopic aesthetics of the show.

To present the selection, Alessandro Michele envisioned a series of images inspired by archival catalogs as a cast of characters strikes dynamic poses against brightly colored backdrops alongside sporty props, captured by photographer Carlijn Jacobs.

With the heritage of both brands encoded in a trio of lines, a fixation on stripes plays out across ready-to-wear pieces that echo the silhouettes of athletic staples and leisurewear. Track pants feature the white Three Stripes of adidas on one leg, while the other is defined by the red and green Web of Gucci. Energetic prints portray how motifs like the adidas Trefoil and GG monogram find synergy to amplify two legacies. Conventionally formal pieces like leather heels, suede loafers, and silk scarves enter hybridized territory as well, as they are marked with casual codes. Similarly, retro aesthetics become intrinsically contemporary as they proclaim there are no rules when it comes to dressing up.

Reflecting a shared commitment to innovation, progress, sustainability goals and collective action, the collection features multiple pieces crafted with future-conscious material fabrications including polyester, cotton and viscose.

The BOGNER High Summer 2022 collection is inspired by the life on the amalfi coast in Italy - luxurious comfort, understated glamour and the typical BOGNER loose elegance. High summer color shades meet new, natural materials for a cool look when it's hot outside. Colorful and comfortable for women in iconic blousons and jackets in memory nylon, a selection of sporty and luxurious shorts in leather, colored denim and terry or summer dresses with unique prints and silhouettes. For men, 100% merino wool jackets, loose suits, outdoor jackets and beach shirts are available for a cool look that conveys subtle glamour and sporty touch.

With the wipes sector adapting to demands for products that protect consumers from COVID-related risks, industry experts will present the latest insights for moving forward post-pandemic at the World of Wipes® (WOW) International Conference.   

The shift from “clean” to “safe” in the world of wipes will be among the key topics thought-leading speakers will address at the in-person event, June 27-30, at the Marriott Marquis in Chicago.

The information-packed program will tackle timely topics to support decision making on the following key themes: Circular and Sustainable Wipes, Supply Chain Challenges in Wipes, Nonwoven Substrates for More Sustainable Wipes, Trends in the Wipes Market and Among Consumers, Disinfection Concerns and New Technologies, Sustainable Wipe Packaging Trends and Developments in Flushability Issues.

World of Wipes Session Highlights

• Lifestyle Shifts and the World of Wipes: Meeting the Changing Consumer Demand to Secure Growth – Liying Quian, Research Analyst, Euromonitor International will explore personal and beauty care trends based on consumer surveys that could shape wipes’ long-term performance
• The Supply Chain – Import Pressures Versus Domestic Manufacturing – Jacob Smith, Director, Supply Chain and Customer Care, Health, Hygiene, and Specialties Division, North America, Berry Global will share his expertise and experience on how COVID-19 has impacted domestic production and international sourcing of wipes
• Packaging Sustainability:  A Global Perspective – David Clark, Vice President of Sustainability, Amcor will look at how consumer brands, retailers and others are responding to consumer demand for more sustainable packaging and discuss progress and risks in the U.S. and other countries
• How Sustainable are You Willing to Be? New Technology to Support Use of Recycled Fiber Sources – Richard Knowlson, Principal, RPK Consulting will tackle the question of how new manufacturing technology can help produce more sustainable nonwoven substrates in today’s price-sensitive environment
• Dead Turtle Logos – What We Know So Far in the EU – Heidi Beatty, Chief Executive Officer, Crown Abbey, LLC will share the latest learnings on the European Union’s Single Use Plastic Directive and the impact of the plastic-free packaging logos on consumer attitudes
• Challenges and Pitfalls of Scaling Up a Waste Cleaning Wipes Collection and Recycle System – Sergio Barbarino, Research Fellow, Fabric and Home Care Open Innovation, Procter & Gamble Distribution Company Europe will look at cleaning wipes’ potential to be recycled and become a convenient pioneering experimental platform
• Case Study: Surface Disinfection Incompatibility with Medical Devices Creates Potential Patient Risks – Caroline Etland, Ph.D., RN. CNS, ACHPN, Associate Professor, Hahn School of Nursing, BINR, University of San Diego will share real examples of the issues healthcare facilities face with surface disinfection incompatibility that make cleaning and disinfection a major challenge

In addition to the conference program, WOW 2022 also features two nights of tabletop displays and receptions; the presentation of the World of Wipes Innovation Award® and the INDA Lifetime Technical Achievement Award; and 11 hours of face-to-face engagement during a welcome reception, first-time attendee mentorship program, and breakfast connections. The event kicks off with the WIPES Academy, a 1.5-day value-added training opportunity on June 27-28.

• Focus on the embossing technique applied to the recycled fabrics collection of the NATIVE Sustainable Textiles line

Performance Days, the leading trade fair on the latest trends in the development of fabrics for the functional textile industry, has as main focus the PERFORMANCE FORUM, where the most recent innovations and developments are presented with a prize awarded to the winner of the category chosen for the current year, which for 2022 will be “The Journey to Carbon Neutrality - CO₂ Reducing Technologies and Measuring Tools”.

Protagonists are therefore all those materials that contain carbon in reduced form and the strategies/technologies that companies implement to ensure the reduction of CO₂ emissions during production and how these reductions are actually measured (through energy saving, careful use of resources, use of more sustainable materials, local production and other technological and production measures).

In this sense, Sitip’s strategy for reducing CO₂ emissions and maximizing the use of resources is based on consolidating and optimizing the layout and logistics of the production plants, installing a cogeneration plant and a new generation smoke smoke abatement system and the transition to an energy-saving lighting system.

Regarding products, at Performance Days Sitip brings its latest innovations with an absolute focus on the embossing technique, a particular system of mechanical processes that can also be used on the recycled items from the NATIVE Sustainable Textiles line, a technology that is applied to fabrics produced with recycled yarns and chemicals with low environmental impact, implementing the GRS standard (Global Recycle Standard), result of the journey towards sustainability implemented by the company.

The collection of embossed designs combines performance, style and sustainability: thanks to special mechanical processes that combine heat and pressure, the fabric is embossed with geometric and design motifs for a more structured and palpable texture.

Chemistry plus creativity” is Officina39’s new tagline expressing the most important values at the core of the company’s approach, founded on a deep understanding of sustainability. Embracing the “plus” that used to feature as part of the Officina39 logo, it now takes the shape of a true formula of innovation that echoes throughout the renovated brand look that the company is introducing for the first time at Kingpins.

The latest addition to the Trustainable™ collection is Aqualess Fade, a technology that recreates the bleaching effect of chlorine on fabrics, a waterless special compound for the discoloration of denim on indigo/black garments which is reducing resource consumption and environmental impact. This innovation completes and integrates Aqualess Mission, a combination of technologies that allows garment laundry processes to reduce 75% of the water use.

Traditional systems usually use about 52 liters of water for a pair of jeans, while Officina39’s cutting-edge technology employs only 12.5 liters without affecting the quality of the final product. Until now, the process included three eco-friendly technologies: Novascraper Indigo, a laser finishing technique that adds a natural, vintage look to denim garments; OZ-ONE Powder, an advanced product to give garments a bleached yet eco-friendly treatment, for a worn and distressed look; and Aqualess Aged, a waterless compound to give denim abrasion effects.

“In our field, the word “less” is to be found pretty much everywhere you look: less water, less energy, less impact and the list goes on. So I asked myself if we could work on implementing the word “plus” in this collection.” stated Stefano Parrotta, Officina39 Technical Manager. “And the answer, of course, was yes: we thought of all the ways in which the idea of more (plus) best represents what we do – more passion, more creativity, more collaboration, more inspiration, more Officina39. I think it is important to look for what the industry needs more of and the word “plus” perfectly embodies that!”

• Flat knitting is one of the most versatile textile forming technologies. What is possible here is shown by STOLL's regular trend collections.
• STOLL from the KARL MAYER Group launches its new "WONDERFUL" trend collection

The latest compilation of inspiring designer pieces is entitled "WONDERFUL". On display are wonderful products designed to make the viewer pause and marvel. "WONDERFUL" shows what it means to create wonderful knitted articles. In today's world, moments of true wonder seem rare, but with the right technology, creative visions become products that inspire and amaze. With STOLL's technological solutions, wonderful product ideas can be realized for everything that is important to us: our children, our home, our appearance and our well-being.

Accordingly, the new trend collection serves different areas of application: Extraordinary STOLL-knit and wear® products in the new gauge of E 10.2 and in established gauges, such as E 7.2, inspire the market for seamless articles. Extravagant combinations of intarsia, STOLL-weave-in® and STOLL-ikat plating® techniques create novel pattern possibilities, material usages and color impressions. The possibility of individualization is supported by selected products via STOLL-autocreate®.

The trend collection causes amazement, but also stands for responsibility and environmental awareness. One chapter presents a sustainable footwear fabric solution that was created in collaboration with renowned players in textile value creation.

"WONDERFUL" was launched in March 2022. The first presentations took place in front of customers in Italy and were a great success. "Our "WONDERFUL" designs were very well received. Some customers have adopted the new pattern options contained there directly into their current collection, and ordered the necessary technical kids to convert their machines," explains Jörg Hartmann, Head of Fashion & Technology at STOLL with satisfaction.